Date: Mon, 11 Jul 1994 00:12:53 -0700 (PDT)
From: Richard Isaac
from the Seattle Times, 7/9/94, page one, w/o permission, all typos and
brackets mine:
INITIATIVES AGAINST GAY RIGHTS FAIL
by Jon Simon, Seattle Times Olympia bureau
Olympia -- Two anti-gay-rights initiatives that spawned a $1 million
opposition effort and some bitterly divisive campaign tactics have failed
to qualify for the November ballot.
...
Cathy Mickels, spokeswoman for teh Initiative 608 campaign, declined to
say how many signatures it gathered.
"We're esctatic. And we're astonished," said Diane McDade of Washington
Citizens for Fairness/Hands Off Washington, the primary opposition
group. "We always assumed from the beginning that they had the ability
to gather enough signatures."
...
Mickels said the group sponsoring 608, qual Rights Not Special Rights,
will meet next week to decide whether to file an initiative to the
Legislature for next January or gear up for another voter initiative in
1995. Likewise, the leaders of Hands Off Washington won't dismatntle the
organization.
...
Initiative supporters blasted the most controversial element of their
opponents' efforts -- a group called "Bigot Busters," which sent teams of
protesters wherever signatures were being gathered. I-608 leaders
accused the Bigot Busters of illegally harassing signature gatherers and
blocking people from signing petitions.
"Given the money and intimidation we were up against, I'm proud we came
this close," said Mickels, 608 spokeswoman, calling Bigot Busters work
"Gestapo tactics." "Next time we'll know how to circumvent that."
Patrick Hogan, a spokesperson for the Bigot Busters, said members were
trained to educate, not harass people. Though some volunteers may have
gotten overly emotional, he denied any acted illegally.
* Richard Isaac
__*_*___ *************************
\* * / Seattle * INITIATIVES 608/610 *
*\ * * b. 1/10/94 d. 7/8/94 *
***\**/** rmisaac *************************
\/ @eskimo.com